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An Allegory Of Joy And Melancholy

Abraham Janssens van Nuyssen, 1623

© Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

This painting is by Abraham Janssens, a significant figure in Flemish art at the beginning of the 17th century. Janssens was born in Antwerp and received his early training under the Flemish artist and collector Jan Snellinck.

Janssens’ mature style was much influenced by his travels in Italy, where he lived in Rome between 1597 and 1602. There he absorbed the lessons of Raphael and Caravaggio before returning to Antwerp in 1602. He soon established a reputation in his home country, where he became the most prominent painter until the return of Peter Paul Rubens from Italy in 1608.

An Allegory of Joy and Melancholy shows two figures, with joy represented by the young woman in the foreground and melancholy as the haggard older figure behind. The gilt tazza in the painting relates to the Ashmolean’s collection of Northern Renaissance metalwork, where comparable examples can be found. Similar items to the decanter held by the figure of joy feature in the museum’s extensive collection of Dutch and English glassware.

The Ashmolean holds works by other significant Flemish artists of the period, including Rubens, Anthony van Dyck and David Teniers the Younger. Janssens’ An Allegory of Joy and Melancholy now joins them there.

More information

Title of artwork, date

An Allegory Of Joy And Melancholy, 1623

Date supported

2016

Medium and material

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

122 x 102cm

Gifted by

Jean Greer

Content note: This object record is part of our archive and has not been updated since it was first published. It may contain inaccurate information or outdated language. Please get in touch if you think this record should be amended.

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